Drama In The Lost Cities
by giakotadia
Summary: Things are changing for the Keeper Crew - even the Keeper Crew. The Neverseen is surprisingly inactive and the Crew is excited to finally behave like normal teenagers. Well, as normal as teenage elves can be. Follow Biana and her friends through their experiences of drama and heartbreak. Maybe being not-so-normal isn't that bad anymore. Tiana endgame. Sophie is irrelevant.
1. Chapter 1

"Hey, Biana?"

Biana jumped at the sound of her brother's voice, scrambling on her bed and pushing a pillow into its rightful place. It was dark and he sounded so eerily like her other brother sometimes, she couldn't tell for sure who it was. Letting out a relieved sigh as she saw her older and not eldest brother enter her room, Biana whispered a soft, "You scared me."

"Sorry about that," Fitz chuckled awkwardly. His face had taken on a queasy appearance, and Biana knew he had to be thinking the same thing as her.

Plastering on a convincing smile, Biana shot one fleeting glance at her decorative pillows and then scooted over on her bed to make room for her brother, patting the space beside her. "So, what do you want?"

"Always right to the point, huh?" Fitz laughed good-naturally.

Biana just stared, not amused. Fitz stopped immediately and his face paled as he sat beside his younger sister. "So?" Biana asked, prodding at Fitz to tell her why he was in her room. "Did anything happen?"

"Soph and I broke up."

That was it. That was all he said. Fitz didn't cry or shout or anything. He just sat on Biana's bed with his head down. And because he didn't have a reaction or show any emotions, Biana didn't know how to reply to this. She could handle an angry Fitz. She could cheer up a sad Fitz. She could comfort a crying Fitz. She could encourage a dejected Fitz. But she couldn't help an emotionless Fitz because she didn't know how.

"How do you feel about that?" Biana asked, trying to at least get a feel of her brother's emotions so she could help.

No answer. He just shrugged.

"Fitz?" Biana probed gently. "You're not sad? Or angry?"

He just sighed. "What's there to be angry about? We broke up. That's it. End of story. No additional drama or messiness." Fitz ran a hand through his already-messy dark brown hair and mumbled, "I kinda wish there was drama or messiness. At least then I'd know what my emotions are."

"Be thankful it's a clean break up," Biana said gently, "and don't beat yourself up over this. If it's meant to be, it'll be. If it isn't, it won't. And if you feel like getting back together with Sophie, TALK TO HER ABOUT IT instead of moping around, okay?"

At that, Fitz cracked a small smile, but it was a smile nonetheless. Biana smirked to herself, feeling proud of what she had accomplished. "Okay," Fitz agreed.

"Good," Biana smiled a little too sweetly. "Now, get out of my room."

Fitz smiled at his sister's antics but left her room, as she had requested – or more like demanded. He heard the door shut softly behind him and a lock click into place. Not thinking much of it, he left. Biana smiled softly to no one in particular after hearing her brother's retreating footsteps.

Now, she thought with a brilliant smile, back to what she was doing before. Biana turned and flopped onto her bed, face red-hot as she reached under her decorative pillows to find her imparter where she had discarded it.

"Biana?" It crackled as it came back to life.

The brunette smiled widely the second her name was uttered. "Yes?" She asked, peering up at Tam's face through her thick, dark eyelashes.

"What did Fitz want?" He questioned, and Biana waved it off, saying it was "nothing important". "If you say so," the shade replied with a hint of suspicion in his voice, but dropped the topic. "What did you want to say before Fitz interrupted us?"

Biana bit her lip to hide the fact she was nervous, giving Tam a coy smile. "As I recall, I wasn't the only one that wanted to say something. How 'bout you go first?"

Surprise flickered across Tam's eyes as he lowered them nervously, playing with his fading bangs. "Uh," he mumbled, "I need some help."

"With what?"

"Talking to this girl I like," Tam's hand came up behind him and he rubbed the back of his neck. "I… I thought, you know, since you're a girl… you could help me figure out what to say to her."

Biana's jaw dropped slightly, but she regained her composure. The only evidence of her shock was the constant fluttering of her eyelashes, almost as if she was trying to blink her tears away. "I, uhm," Biana cleared her throat awkwardly, "yea. Who's this girl?"

"Well, you know Glimmer-?"

"The Neverseen girl?!" Biana screeched, eyes widening in anger and concern.

"Yes?" Tam confirmed, looking… nervous.

Biana bit her bottom lip, pursing it as she closed her eyes for a few seconds. When she opened them again, almost all trace of her anger was gone, except for the slight redness of her cheeks and nose, and the watery feeling in her eyes. "Why her?" She asked, sounding like she was forcing the words out through gritted teeth.

"She's so beautiful," Tam had stars in his eyes as he gazed off into nowhere in particular. "She's so pretty and her intelligence… it's like she knows everything. She's so fierce and bold as well. Honestly, she scares me a little when she's mad – its like there's fire in her eyes. But she looks gorgeous when she's infuriated so I mess with her on purpose sometimes…"

Tam didn't notice the fading smile on Biana's face and the pain in her eyes as he rambled on about the new 'love of his life' and finished with, "I think she's perfect."

"Then why don't you tell her all that?" Biana said a little rudely. "You seem to have an entire list of reasons why you like her. She'll love that."

Tam recoiled a little at the iciness in Biana's voice, but nodded. "Thanks Biana," he shot her one of his rare grins, making her heart do that _thump-thump-thump_ she had restricted it to do. "I'll hail her right now and tell her. You're the best, Bi."

"No problem," Biana whispered to a dark screen, watching the teardrops land on it as the fake smile finally slid off her face. Once the tears started flowing, they didn't stop. That night, Biana rid her heart of its heavy feeling and cleaned her eyes very thoroughly – aka she cried herself to sleep, revisiting every doubt she had about herself and feeling all of her insecurities come back to her.

The next morning, Biana set up a bubble bath, filling her tub with water and adding a gazillion bubbles, along with some scented candles on the edges and flower petals. She laid in the bath for half an hour, fat droplets of tears rolling down her face every once in a while, before she grabbed a loofah and scrubbed her entire body red and numb. She scrubbed the hardest at the swirly white scars she had gotten from Vespera and, when they didn't disappear, settled for scratching them, hard.

A stinging feeling brought Biana back to her present and made her realize she had torn open one of the scars and the water in the bath was a deep red. Shit, was her only thought as she lunged out of the bath and for her bathrobe. It was also her last thought, as she had lost a lot of blood and ended up hitting her head on a metal handle.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hey guys! I'm so glad you enjoyed this story!**

**Thank you PoptartsAndBooks for reviewing! First off, I **_**love **_**your name! Poptarts are heavenly delicious! Thank you so much for your kind words! Yes, I am thinking of an epic throw-down between those two characters, like you suggested. **

**And thank you Huskyhowlz for reviewing! I'm so glad you like my story! **

**Here's the update you guys asked for! Enjoy the chapter!**

Darkness.

It was so dark. Overwhelmingly so.

Biana couldn't see anything. Then, white spots appeared and her head hurt. Everything was dizzy. She felt weird, like she was floating or something. And there was this odd feeling, a background noise or something. It was a strange humming, or almost buzzing noise that suffocated Biana.

She caught wisps of conversations and feelings but couldn't make much sense of them. It was just an annoying noise and she wanted so badly for it to disappear.

There was a sour taste on her tongue and Biana recoiled, feeling her eyebrows push together. She struggled against the liquid but eventually gave in as there was nothing she could do. It flowed through her mouth, dancing across her tongue and irritating her taste buds before washing down her throat.

"Sleep tight Biana," she could hear a vaguely familiar voice say before the darkness took her over once again.

When she came to again, it was surprisingly bright. Biana realized she was in the Healing Centre at Foxfire. With that awareness of her surroundings also came the realization of a purring creature on her chest.

"Wha-?" She mumbled blearily, lifting her aching head softly to see Bullhorn on her chest. Upon seeing that Biana was awake, he licked one of his paws and leaped off her, landing right on his feet with surprising grace.

Once Bullhorn had disappeared from her line of view, Biana lifted the furry blanket she was covered with and discarded it on the side of her bed. A sharp breath escaped her lips as she glanced down at her arms only to find them all bandaged up. "What happened?" She asked to the empty room, not quite expecting an answer.

"Ah, you're awake." Elwin strode out of his office and into the main Healing Centre area. The feathery dinosaurs on his yellow tunic rippled and moved with every step he took. "How are you feeling Biana?"

She glanced up at him in confusion. "How did I get here? What happened? I-" She moved to get up, only to slouch back into the bed as her entire body groaned in protest. "OW!"

"You need some rest, stay in bed." Elwin said as he uncorked a few vials of liquids that were unfamiliar to Biana. "And," he added, holding the vials up to Biana's lips, "you need to drink these."

"I don't even know what happened!" She protested, but Elwin tipped the liquids into her mouth.

"I'll explain once you're done drinking. I'm sure you'll have a lot of questions."

Biana glared, but finished all the vials obediently. When she was done, she sat up, ignoring the headrush and the pain her body felt, crossing her arms defiantly. "Explain."

"Dex and Fitz found you in your bathroom this morning," he breathed heavily, sighing. "You were in a pool of blood, both from your arm and your head."

Biana's hand slowly went up to her head in surprise, where a bandage was wrapped around the circumference. She hadn't noticed it when she woke up. Wincing, she probed it with her fingers. "Ouch," she confirmed, letting go of her head to realize that her fingers were covered in blood.

"You're bleeding through," Elwin said in alarm. He grabbed a few more bandages and tied them deftly around her head and force-fed her some more serums. "That should stop the bleeding for now, and replenish all the blood you lost."

Biana paled. That did not sound good.

"You're staying overnight again and we'll see how you are tomorrow morning," Elwin promised, as if he sensed her worries. "Your parents, Fitz and Dex stayed for a little while before they were called away by Sophie. They said they'd be back."

Huh. That was weird. Biana didn't say that, however, just nodded quietly, staring at the wall on the opposite side of the room.

She stayed like that for a while, not blinking, not stirring, just staring. What else could she do – sleep? No thank you, Biana thought, crossing her arms with a frown. She had had enough of that bleak, dark place to last a lifetime. It was better to do nothing.

After what seemed like an eternity but probably was merely a few hours, give or take, Biana finally heard someone who wasn't Elwin – no offense there – or Bullhorn. Eyes lighting up, Biana sat up higher in her bed only to see her very best friend, note the sarcasm, Glimmer. To her complete and utter dismay, the woman still hadn't taken off her hood.

Rolling her eyes, Biana watched with a scowl as Glimmer conversed with Elwin in a friendly tone, her eyes shooting daggers at the hooded woman. Friendly my ass, Biana thought with disdain, just wait until she betrays us all. Then everyone will know that I was right saying that we shouldn't trust her.

On a subconscious level, Biana knew these thoughts weren't her. It was her jealousy speaking. But she couldn't - wouldn't - admit that. No, she was too stubborn and too prideful to do so. Because of those very reasons, she didn't say a word to Glimmer as she left, not even acknowledging her presence even though Biana was very much in need of some interaction with other people.

"Time for some more serums," Elwin proclaimed cheerfully as the light streaming in from the windows dimmed. It was nearly eleven and Biana hadn't heard from her family or friends. That was odd. She tried to ask Elwin about it before, but he was a little too busy cleaning his office and tending to rambunctious prodigies that messed up in class.

Biana obediently swallowed serum after serum, hoping it would sweeten Elwin up before she asked him what was happening. "Elwin..." she started cautiously, peering up at the fun man.

"Yes, Miss. Vacker?"

"Uhm, I was just wondering..." Biana started, not knowing exactly how to deliver her question. "Why exactly hasn't -"

"-any of your friends and family visited you while you were awake?" Elwin finished, handing Biana a bottle of Youth. "I'm not sure," the man admitted as Biana took the drink. "It might have something to do with the fact that Sophie and the Councillors and Mr. Forkle are all arguing."

This caught Biana's attention. "Wait," her eyebrow puckered, "they're all arguing? Like, no ones agreeing."

"Yep," Elwin sighed, pushing his crazy glasses up higher on his nose. "No one knows when they're gonna resolve the issue. That's why Team Valiant is with Sophie at Everglen and the Collective is having meeting after meeting at one of their hideouts and the Council is laying down law after law for the entire Elvin population.

"Wait, but I'm part of Team Valiant!" Biana cried, reaching over her nighttable for her Imparter. "I should be included in whatever discussions they're having!"

Elwin nodded at that. "I'll leave you to it then. Don't stress yourself too much, I expect you to be asleep in two hours."

Biana gave a mock salute, smiling. As he left, Biana whispered to her Imparter, "Show me Sophie Foster."

No answer.

She tried again. The same thing happened.

Biana groaned and hailed Dex instead, grinning when he picked up.

"Hey Biana, are you feeling better?" Dex asked, his dimples coming into display as he smiled at her worriedly.

"I'm fine, don't worry about me. Except... what's this I hear about Sophie and The Collective and The Council all fighting?"

Dex's face fell and Biana could see the fear in his periwinkle eyes. "UHm yeah, about that, we're having a meeting right now... If you want I can bring you, on the Imparter of course," he added hastily as Biana nodded.

"That sounds perfect, Dex, thank you!"

"It's no problem, really, Biana," Dex said, smiling and showcasing his adorable dimples. "I know what it feels like to have nothing to do. Trust me."

"But still," Biana beamed, "thanks for doing this. You're right – it really is boring, having nothing to do all day. The worst part was that I didn't even see people visit!" Once Dex's face blanched, Biana backtracked rapidly. "I didn't mean it like that, Dex – I was just saying, like, whenever Sophie's in this godforsaken place, we're always visiting her and talking to her and we're all almost always there. With me it's different." She finished sadly.

"I feel you," Dex nodded along. "Sometimes I think we all give Sophie too much of our attention, and that we don't really pay attention to anyone else."

"Finally, someone other than me gets it!"

"And," Dex continued, eyes alight, "if it's not Sophie, it's either Wonderboy or Keefe."

"Keefe, I understand though," Biana interjected. "He's been through a lot, with his family and the Neverseen and whatnot. With Fitz and Sophie, however, its gettig a little too much."

"Oh, shoot," Dex cursed suddenly.

"What?"

"The meetings starting in a few minutes. I'm gonna move and we're gonna have to stop this conversation for now." He looked a little put out, if Biana was to be honest with herself. It surprised her. She didn't know that a person would enjoy a conversation with her enough to look sad when it was over.

"Okay," Biana whispered with a smile.


	3. Chapter 3

When Dex entered the room, an argument was going on. Sophie was, yet again, trying to get Mr. Forkle to tell her who her biological parents – well, only father now – were. Biana rolled her eyes, glad basically no one could see her. Considering how awfully Sophie had reacted (and still was acting) when she figured out that Oralie was her biological mother, it really wasn't the best idea to tell her. Biana just hoped Mr. Forkle knew this and continued hiding the information from her.

She knew that seemed a little rude but it was true. Sophie acted like a victim when she didn't know any information but when she acted like a brat whenever she didn't like what she knew – which was most of the time.

"Sophie, the meeting is starting now," Biana heard Mr. Forkle say, "we can continue this discussion sometime later." Biana could feel Mr. Forkle say _or not_ in his head.

Sophie huffed, "Fine." And Biana could picture her crossing her arms and stomping over to a couch or something like she always did when things didn't go her way.

"We have to discuss some new developments," Tiergan said.

"What new developments?" Biana heard Dex ask. "Is this about Biana's accident? Is that why it's not just Team Valiant but everyone?"

"Not exactly," Mr. Forkle said mysteriously.

"What do you mean by that?" Linh piped up.

"What he means by that," Biana heard her father, Alden, say, "is that we found some new things about Biana."

"Is that why she's not here?" Tam asked, "because the information is about her and it's bad?"

Biana's heart felt like it was about to pop out of her chest. What information? Why didn't she know abou this? It was definitely time to talk to Elwin. And her parents.

"We..." Della, her mother, stammered, "well we found some terrifying information about her."

"What? Mom, Dad, what aren't you telling us?" Fitz asked, and there was a crack in his voice that hurt Biana's heart.

"After her... accident in her shower, Elwin found something as he did some tests on her," her father said.

"Alvar messed with Biana's DNA while Della was pregnant with her," Mr. Forkle said solemnly.

No. The imparter slipped from Biana's hands. There was no way. She heard more voices and knelt down to pick the device up to get the full information.

"So," Sophie was asking, "she's like me?"

"In a way," Tiergan said, "yes."

"Does she have any new abilities?" Keefe asked.

"Beguiler."

Everyone sucked in a breath.

Biana's hands started shaking again. She tossed the imparter on her healing centre bed and clenched her hands into fists to stop the trembling. No way. There was absolutely no way.

"So, you're saying she's like me," Keefe said, "made by the Neverseen to help them."

Maybe that was why no one was visiting. That, and the fact that she was practically useless. No one liked her. Now Biana knew why.

"Not exactly," Tiergan said.

"She has been acting weird lately," Tam revealed. "She was cold, and snappish towards me yesterday night. Caught me by surprise. I thought she might be PMS-ing or something."

Biana heard him grunt in pain, followed by Linh crowing, "that's what you get! You don't say stuff like that, Tam!"

"Geez," Tam muttered, "sorry."

Keefe chuckled half-heartedly.

"Maybe she knew about it?" Sophie guessed. "And maybe..."

"No," Dex interjected, "don't finish that sentence Sophie."

"...she wants to join the Neverseen," Mr. Forkle said gravely. "That's what we thought too."

"B-but," Dex stammered, "what about her accident? Surely, she wouldn't...no."

No was correct, Biana thought numbly. She couldn't believe that they actually thought that she would willingly join the Neverseen. The radical group that wanted them all dead. She had risked her life multiple times facing off against them.

"No one is to tell her," her mother said sternly. "We don't want it to influence her."

Influence her into what? Go straight to the Neverseen? _Yeah, right_, Biana scoffed. Now that she knew, she was staying far, _far _away from the deranged group of mad people.

"This meeting is adjourned," Mr. Forkle announced.

"Perfect," Sophie exclaimed, "now we can continue our discussion."

"But what about Biana?" Dex asked.

"Simple," Fitz said, "we act normal around her. If she does one suspicious thing, lock her up in Exile."

Excuse him? Biana furrowed her eyebrows. Who was this and what had he done with Fitz? Her brother would never suggest locking her up.

"Fitz," Linh gasped, "that's your sister!"

"And Alvar was my brother," Fitz countered. "We disown everyone that goes to the Neverseen."

A lone tear slid down Biana's cheek but she wiped it away. If this was how her brother felt, then she would change his mind. She would never turn to the Neverseen, she promised herself.

She disconnected the Imparter call, resting her head on her pillow. How had everything changed in a matter of fifteen minutes? Nothing would ever stay the same again.

A few seconds later, Elwin bustled into the room, and stopped by Biana's bed. "Time to take a few more serums."

Biana groaned, but swallowed the three serums and bottle of youth obediantly. "Any news from my parents, Elwin?"

"Not from your parents, no," Elwin said as he threw the empty bottles into a trash can. "But," he turned to Biana, smiling, "Linh did say that she and Tam would stop by later today with Keefe, Dex and Sophie."

"Okay," she whispered with a small smile. Maybe things would be just fine after all. She would just have to make sure Dex hadn't told the others about her listening in on the meeting.

As that thought entered her mind, Biana grabbed her Imparter and tapped out a few quick messages to the strawberry blonde.

Biana: Don't tell the others about what happened please

Biana: I'll tell them later, when I have the chance, ok?

Dex: of course.

Biana: thank you so much, Dex.

Dex: It's no problem. Besides, you deserved to know.

Biana looked down at the device, smiling briefly before turning the screen off and putting it onto her nightstand.

"You should get some rest now," Elwin said, gesturing to the lack of colour in Biana's normally olive complexion.

Biana nodded, "Right." She knew she'd need the rest if she was going to convince everyone that she was completely normal and not at all part of the Neverseen.

With that, Biana pulled up her covers and slipped into a blissful state of dreams where her life was perfect.


	4. Chapter 4

"She's asleep," a gentle, familiar voice reported.

"Should we wake her?" Another voice asked.

Another clucked their tongue, "No, let her rest."

Biana moaned, and shuffled around, now awake but still bleary.

"Biana?" A soft, feminine voice asked. "Are you awake?"

"No," Biana mumbled, her nose scrunching up at the taste and feeling of her mouth. Oh, how she missed her bedroom with all her belongings. She would have to ask Elwin about getting some of her possessions. It didn't look like she was going to leave anytime soon.

"Ok," the voice, who Biana now recognized as Linh, said. "Wait - what? Biana!"

Giggling slightly, Biana removed the covers and sat up. "Can't believe you fell for that," she muttered, rubbing her eyes. "Did you guys bring anything to eat? I'm starving."

"Tam's cooking right now, actually," Linh winked, making Biana's cheeks redden. "He'll bring it over once it's done. Someone," Linh nudged Dex, "couldn't wait to see you."

"Oh," Biana whispered, wishing her cheeks would stop flaming.

"Ooh," Keefe wiggled his eyebrows, "Miss Prettypants has got-"

"Shut up, Keefe." Biana and Linh said at the same time.

"Ouch," the blond mumbled, "that hurts a lot."

"Good," Biana deadpanned. Smiling brightly, she asked, "so what happened in the meeting?"

"How do you know about the meeting?" Sophie asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Elwin told me about it," Biana shrugged carelessly, acting as she normally would, "and, I was talking to Dex and he left me for the meeting." She pouted at the periwinkle-eyed boy with a playful wink.

His cheeks turned pink and he stammered out a small "sorry 'bout that".

"Relax," Biana laughed, "I was just teasing you."

There was a pause as the conversation stalled.

"We brought some of your things for you," Sophie said, smiling, in an effort to bring the conversation back to life. "I- we thought you might want some things from home. Elwin said he might keep you here for the rest of the week."

Biana groaned, taking the bag Sophie held out. "I don't want to be here for the rest of the week!" She complained and started peering through the bag. "Ooh, thanks guys!" She beamed, taking Lady Sassyfur out of the bag along with a few of her favourite books, her sketchbook and her pens.

"It was nothing." Sophie waved it off.

"How are you feeling?" Keefe changed the subject, his eyes focused on Biana intensely.

Biana lowered her eyes from Keefe's, staring down at her blanket as her cheeks turned a bright red because of his attention. "Good, I guess. My memory is foggy and my head hurts but that's mostly it."

"That's good," Keefe smiled, actually smiled – not smirked, and put his hand on Biana's forehead. "You're warm, though. That's not a good sign."

"I don't think her accident is the reason she's warm," Dex grumbled.

Linh chided, "Don't be jealous, Dex."

"I'm not!"

Biana sighed, "come on guys, you're here to visit me. Please don't argue."

"Ever the peacekeeper, Bi," Sophie shook her head, hiding a smile.

"Shut up," Biana said in mock anger.

"Make me," Sophie retorted.

"Don't kiss Foster, Miss Prettypants!" Keefe yelped. "Your brother won't be too happy if you do."

Oof. Sophie's face crumpled as if she was in pain and a few tears slipped down her cheeks. Too soon, Keefe, too soon.

"When is he ever happy?" Biana tried to restore the light atmosphere. It didn't work.

"When I'm not there," Sophie hiccuped.

"That's not true and you know it, Soph."

Sophie didn't believe Linh's words. "Right. That's why he's probably joking around with Wylie now but the minute I step into his line of vision, he goes all stiff and quiet."

"He just doesn't know how to feel," Linh continued trying to comfort the blonde.

"That's true," Biana jumped in, "he was talking to me yesterday about how he didn't know how to feel about your break up. He misses you, Soph. He just doesn't want to admit it."

"He's too prideful and stubborn," Keefe agreed. "And you deserve better than that."

That was not part of the plan. Biana shot Keefe a warning glance but he waved it off, continuing. "You deserve so much better, Foster. Someone who will trust you no matter what, who's always there for you... who doesn't blame you for everything that goes wrong in his life."

"Keefe," Biana hissed, "that's too much and far too soon."

"You know she's not ready," Linh added.

"You know," Sophie interjected with a sniffle, "that she's right here in the room."

"Right," Biana said promptly, "sorry." It's not like you ever do that with me, she thought bitterly but then remembered that no one knew. Life was so messed up.

Dex changed the subject, "isn't the weather wonderful?"

"It's raining, Dex," Biana deadpanned, suppressing a laugh. When everyone else started laughing, however, Biana joined in with her own tinkling giggles.

"We really needed that," Linh said with a smile, squeezing Dex's hand.

"Oi," Biana frowned, "I had a 50% part in that! Where's my hand squeeze?"

"Jealousy doesn't suit you, Princess Prettypants," Keefe said as he squeezed Biana's hand, his hot breath tickling her cheek.

Biana blushed and stammered out a "go away, Keefe!" He just chuckled, throwing an arm around her shoulders, just to bother her.

The healing centre doors opened and in came Tam, carrying a huge pot. It was steaming hot, by the looks of it. Linh and Sophie exchanged a brief look and dragged Dex and Keefe out of the room.

"Wait - guys!" Biana called after them. "Where are you going?"

"Important Black Swan stuff!" Linh threw over her shoulder. "Have fun with Tam!"

Mumbling incoherent words under her breath, Biana pulled up her blanket and crossed her arms. Her façade of being mad didn't last long, however, because her stomach growled. Loudly.

"Didn't realize you were that hungry," Tam said off-handedly. "Sorry I took so long. I accidentally burnt the toast so I had to go out and get some more." He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

Biana laughed, shaking her head. "At least you tried," she said.

"I- yeah, I guess." His cheeks tinged pink. "So," he changed the subject, "how are you feeling?"

"I've been better."

Tam rolled his eyes but the corner of his mouth twitched upwards. "No, really?" He said sarcastically.

"I'm going to ignore that comment because I'm starving and I don't like fighting with people on an empty stomach."

"Oh! Right," Tam went to hand Biana the few tin containers he had, "here you g- uh."

Biana blushed as she saw the realization dawn on Tam's face. Her left hand was wrapped up to staunch the bleeding and her right hand had also been wrapped up, to cover her scars.

"Looks like I'm feeding you," Tam joked.


	5. Chapter 5

Blushing, Biana stubbornly clamped her mouth shut and refused to open it. Tam resorted to poking it with the spoon and saying "open wide!". He must have repeated it a bazillion times when Elwin walked into the room, sporting a tunic with, what looked like, little gremlins.

"What's going on here?" He asked, the confusion evident on his face.

Biana's eyes widened and a deeper blush appeared on her cheeks. Tam dropped the spoon in surprise, a pink tinge on his pale cheeks. Tugging on his bangs forcefully, he stared right into Biana's eyes. He seemed to be saying _Whatever-You-Do-Don't-You-Dare-Tell-Him-I-Was-Feeding-You-He'll-Tell-The-Blond-Haired-Monstrosity _AKA Keefe.

To Elwin, Biana stammered out, "We weren't doing anything. Tam's just keeping me company 'cause everyone else had _something else_ to do." Biana said 'something else' with a roll of her eyes even _Tam _was impressed of.

"Yeah, okay." Elwin cracked a smile. "Don't you two worry, I won't tell anyone you," he winked at Tam conspiratorially, "were feeding her."

Tam scowled and muttered something that sounded like "You'd better not".

As Elwin was going into his little office, he poked his head back out. "Oh, yeah! Before I forget—Glimmer is going to come to pick up some things. Please direct her to my office when she comes in."

Of course._ Like things couldn't get any worse._ Biana was stuck in the hospital wing for the rest of the week or so, she couldn't use her arms at all, her friends were hiding secrets from her, she was a beguiller, her eldest brother had done experiments on her, Tam liked Glimmer and now, she was going to be seeing a lot of the ex-Neverseen member.

Biana gazed at Tam's face intently, trying to see if he was excited or nervous about Glimmer. When she found nothing, she sighed. Loudly.

"You okay?" Tam asked, his silver-blue eyes seeming like they were peering into her very soul.

Biana became very interested in the spoon that lay on the hospital bed. "Fine."

"Okay." Tam seemed suspicious of her reply, but let it slide. "Please cooperate this time," he said with a half-smile, taking the spoon and the Porcaroot Pie.

"Only because I'm starving," Biana conceded, accepting the bite of pie Tam held out for her. After swallowing it, she mumbled, "This is so awkward."

Tam raised an eyebrow. "You think?" The half-smile on his face grew into a half-smirk. "Gnome, if Keefe was here, he'd have a field day."

"Oh, he would." Biana groaned, her mind coming up with millions of situations where Keefe teased them mercilessly, each worse than the last. "He'd better not find out about this."

Tam laughed.

A warm feeling blossomed in Biana's stomach as she gazed at Tam in a new light. She didn't realize she was smiling, until Tam pointed it out to her.

"What are you smiling about?" He had asked.

Biana bit her lip, but eventually told the truth. "I've just never heard you laugh before. It's a nice change. You should do it more often."

"There aren't many things to laugh about nowadays."

Biana's smile grew wider. "You just have to find the moments in your daily life. There are so many of them that just slip by. Unnoticed."

"You seem to have given this a fair bit of thought."

"Of course," Biana nodded. "I always try to see the best in things. Optimism is kind-of my thing," she joked.

Tam smiled his half-smile again. "Well, we can't all be optimists. The world would be too cheery of a place then."

"That wouldn't be so bad now, would it?"

Tam mimed gagging. "Okay, but can you imagine Fintan and Mr. Forkle being happy all the time and frigging picking flowers and giving them to each other!"

"Oh, ew!" Biana cried, a few giggles slipping past her lips. As an afterthought, she added, "Why can I actually imagine this?"

Tam snickered. "'Cause you need Elwin."

"More like _you _need Elwin," Biana countered with a faux shudder. "After all, you're the one who thought of that horrific scenario in the first place!"

Tam scowled and did something no one would expect him to do.

He stuck his tongue out.

He actually _stuck _his _tongue _out.

And he wasn't imitating a frog catching a fly.

He stuck his tongue out at Biana for _fun_.

"D-did you just..." Biana blinked rapidly, wondering if what she had just witnessed was real. "Did you just stick your tongue out at me?" She demanded, her jaw dropping a little bit.

"Yup," Tam popped the p and grinned a real grin. "Why- did it bother you? Has no one stuck their tongue at you before, Biana Vacker." He teased.

Biana's jaw dropped even more. "Damn," she whispered. "I never imagined you'd be joking around with me."

"Then what makes you think this isn't a dream? Y'know, a figment of your imagination and all that glittery alicorn poop?"

Rolling her eyes, Biana pinched herself in the arm. "There, it's not a dream." She looked back up at Tam just to see him hunched over in silent laughter. "Seriously?"

"I... I didn't... expect you... to... to actually pinch yourself!" He managed to regain control of himself.

Biana pouted. "This is bullying."

"Right," Tam scoffed with his lopsided grin. "The big, mean ol' Tam is bullying poor Princess Biana."

"Not you too!" Biana cried. "I'm not _Princess _Biana." Then, she smirked. "I'm _Queen _Biana. Get it right, peasant!"

Tam dropped his head in a mock bow. "Does that please you, Your Royal Highness?"

"It was barely adequate," Biana sniffed, tossing her hair over her shoulder. "You'll have to do better than that!"

"Like what?" Tam asked, leaning closer to her. His eyes darted down to her lips, or so it seemed. Biana couldn't be sure. It wouldn't do her any good to imagine things.

"Like," Biana's breathing was shallow, "like..."

"Where's Elwin?" A voice demanded.

Biana and Tam both snapped out of their daze and saw Glimmer there.

Biana's heart clenched painfully as a tinge of pink spread over Tam's cheeks.

"He's in his office," Tam told her, and his voice seemed a little higher than usual. He cleared his throat uncomfortably a few times. "You really made a fool of yourself there," he mumbled to himself when his voice went back to normal and Glimmer had gone into Elwin's office.

Biana couldn't stop herself and blurted out, "You never do that!"

"How can you be so sure?" Tam asked, his cheeks still pink. He wouldn't meet Biana's eyes and stared at a point on the wall behind her.

"Because," Biana explained with a smile. "You're Tam Song. Bangs Boy extraordinaire. One of the most powerful shades and, dare I say, you're even more powerful than Sophie Foster. Trust me," she added at Tam's incredulous look, "you are. You're beyond kind, beyond brave and so incredibly selfless. You're loyal. You're intelligent. You're you."

At this point, Tam's blush had deepened and he was tugging on his bangs. "I... I don't know what to say."

"You don't have to say anything." Biana shook her head lightly, a soft smile on her lips. "You just have to be yourself. Properly. Don't sell yourself short. You're amazing, Tam Song."

"You've told me that before," Tam pointed out, his half-smile returning.

"And I'll keep telling you until you believe it."

His half-smile blossomed into a full on, lopsided grin. And Biana grinned back, the fluttery feeling in her stomach returning ten-fold._ Thousand-fold seemed more like it. _


	6. Chapter 6

"Biana," Tam started once Biana had polished off the last bit of Porcaroot Pie. "I need to tell you something."

Biana's heart fluttered against her will. Stupid, traitorous heart, she thought, hating how she couldn't control her feelings. "Yeah?" She asked, begging her voice to stay steady. "What is it?"

"It's about the meeting, actually." He looked nervous, Biana observed, he was tugging on his bangs and looking anywhere but at her.

"What about the meeting?" Biana's eyebrows knitted together. Did he know she had been listening?

Tam exhaled quietly. "I really don't know how to say this... there's something the Black Swan found about you. Something none of us knew about. Something horrible the Neverseen did to you. Something," he sighed, "something I can't tell you about."

"If you can't tell me about it," Biana felt sick. "then don't."

"No, you don't understand. I have to." He looked so earnest. Biana almost looked away. "You deserve to know," Tam said softly, taking Biana's small hand in his larger ones.

Biana gazed up at Tam, biting her lip softly. "What is it?" She asked gently.

"The Neverseen—Alvar—they did something to you while Della was pregnant with you. They messed with your DNA, like the Black Swan kinda did to Sophie. You're a beguiler."

Biana smiled. "I know."

"W-what?" Tam's jaw dropped. "How do you know?"

Biana bit her lip harder. "Uh, Dex kinda, sorta, might have let me listen to the meeting?"

"Well, you deserved to know about it."

"Thanks," Biana said shyly.

They were in silence for some time.

Then, they heard a door slam and Glimmer stomped out of Elwin's office with a deadly glare resting on her face.

"Are you okay?" Tam asked.

"Just peachy." Was Glimmer's retort. She strode out the door without a second glance and slammed it once she left.

Biana and Tam stared after her in shock. "You sure you like her?" Biana whispered to Tam jokingly, ignoring the pang in her heart.

"Uhm, about that..." Tam said nervously, running a hand through his dark hair. "There's something else I should tell you."

"What is it?" Biana was intrigued. Maybe, just maybe, he'd tell her that he was joking about liking Glimmer and he actually liked Biana instead. Who was she kidding? That would never happen. Not even in a million years. She could still dream though.

Before Tam could continue, the door slammed open.

"What the hell?" Biana mumbled, slipping out of the bed and putting her feet on the cold tiled floor.

"You stay there, Biana." Tam got off the bed and approached the door slowly. Silently, he pulled the door open further. Nothing.

Biana sighed in relief.

It was too soon.

In a flash, Tam was knocked backwards, into the metal bedframe of another hospital bed.

"TAM!" Biana screamed, standing up and rushing over to him.

Bad idea.

She never even made it there.

Someone grabbed her and slammed her into a wall. Biana kicked and punched and flailed. It actually worked. She had kneed the dude in the one spot where it hurt the most.

Tam was groaning and starting to get up.

Unfortunately, their attacker was not alone.

Biana ducked for cover as a fireball was aimed at her. She barely missed it. The ball of fire had scorched the ends of her long brown hair. Biana sighed in relief.

Then, Tam suddenly tackled her.

"What the hell?" She managed.

"Stay down." Tam hissed. He even pinned her down, pressing something into her hand. He got up and turned towards Fintan. "Leave us alone." Tam demanded coldly, summoning shadows around him. "Or face my wrath."

"You think you can beat me? Us?" Fintan sneered. "Please. You're just a lovesick teenage boy. You don't know the first thing about fights."

Tam's shadows burst towards Fintan at an alarming speed. They sunk into every part of him they could reach. "Has anyone told you that you talk too much?" Tam smirked.

"TAM! Watch out!" Biana screamed.

It was a little too late.

Ruy, the dude she had kneed in the place where the sun doesn't shine, had gotten up and grabbed a melder. He aimed it right at Tam and shot.

Tam crumpled to the floor.

Biana's eyes flashed dangerously. "You'll regret that," she warned.

"What will you do?" Ruy laughed. "Your hands and arms are bandaged. You tried to kill yourself not even three days ago. Your mind isn't in the right place. You can't do anything to hurt me."

"You know," Biana said, struggling to get up from where Tam had pinned her down, "Tam was right. You guys talk too much." With that, she aimed for Ruy with the cube Tam had given her.

Ruy laughed harder when nothing happened. "What was that supposed to do?"

"I don't know," Biana admitted, dismayed. "It didn't work."

"No, duh." Ruy strode towards her slowly, grabbing her by the upper arm and pulling her up. He held up a leaping crystal to the light streaming through from the wide windows. "Time to go."

"W-what about Fintan? Don't you need him?" At this point, Biana was just saying whatever came to her in an effort to stall. "A-and you can't just leave Tam here. He'll tell everyone you attacked us and abducted him."

Ruy's lips twisted into a wicked smirk. "Oh, don't you worry about that. Gethen will be by shortly. He will wipe the shade's memories and alter them to make him think that you planned the attack. Then, all your little friends and your stupid Vacker family will think that you betrayed them."

"No," the words escaped Biana's lips alongside a whimper. "You can't do that!"

"My dear Vacker," Ruy murmured. "I can do anything as long as I have the power to."

"The Black Swan has more power than you!" Biana spat.

Ruy's smirk grew. "Oh, really? Then why, tell me, have they waited so long to plan any counter attacks. If they're as powerful as you say they are, they surely would have enough information to find us. And enough manpower to fight us and actually win."

Oh, how am I going to get out of this? Was Biana's final thought as Ruy roughly pulled her into the light from his leaping crystal.


End file.
